Friday, 1 October 2010

A Tour of my Friend's Enchanting Cottage Style Home Pt.1 ~Bonus: Using Stain to Age a Cabinet

Oh my!! Isn't her house delightful?  (Grass coming next week. :o)
If it seems like I haven't been as consistent posting lately, it's because I have  a VERY good excuse! A good friend has been working with her dear hubby on their 'dream' home and of course we wanted to help out. In fact, I spent all afternoon helping her unpack their heavenly office and helping her organize it. This isn't the first time I've helped her organize things. Organizing is my thing--like decorating is hers. :o) Another sweet friend, whom I mentioned yesterday, Shannon Mucha of Blu Bambu:Art in the Every Day, also helped her. Between the three of us, we got her office in great shape with all her homeschool books just where she wanted them.  It was just too much decision making for one female mind!

And being the gardening 'queen' that she is, she had already planted some of her zinnas in the mailbox planter.  (Why was I not surprised?!)  She is a fabulous gardener and her plants are her 'babies'. She also has four kids and is a model homeschool mom..but gardening is her hobby and passion which she pursues in her spare time.  Me---I sew and raise chickens..but  my dear sweet hubby brings me my flowers from the grocery store--except in the spring when the grow wild.  Tee-hee!



 Laurie is on the left. (My daughter is just behind her.) My friends, Peggy, Ruth, and Millicent are scrubbing floors. There was tons of dust everywhere!
  We've gone over several times to help them with cleaning after the construction, packing, moving and unpacking as have several other friends of hers from our church.  It's just part of being 'community'.  We all help each other out when needed. It's a great time to visit and catch up. That's what being friends is all about. :o)


Why do I call this their dream home? Because this was that 'once in a lifetime' chance to have a custom home built where they got to make it every thing they wanted down to the tiniest detail. It is truly exquisite!  They've worked very hard and saved every penny so they could make this dream come true. I'm so proud of them!

 Antique Dresser from Laurie's parents...turned into a sink and counter. Love the detailing!

I'll be posting photos later when Laurie has it all decorated, but it really is  beautiful now--such gorgeous textures and colors. Plus they have incorporated so many 'special' touches of their own.

 Isn't this mudroom/laundry room just to 'die' for??!!

I love seeing how other people design their own homes because you can glean so many great ideas that could be incorporated in your own home. So come with me, for the grand tour!  I'm only showing you half the house today...it's 4,000 sq. ft.   Come back tomorrow for 'part II'. 


It's hard to say which room I love best. The kitchen is really beautiful with two huge bars. She and her husband host bible studies and other church events in their home--so it really makes a lot of sense for them. Laurie picked and arranged every tile in the backsplash. They plan to stain the white grout because it messes up the 'look'. I'm always amazed at her artistic eye. She chose all the colors, stains, wood work, granite, brick etc.


There is no telling how many hours of work and painstaking decision making and research that went into this process. I got to see just one set of samples when she was picking out the stain for the wood for all the custom cabinets. I think she had about eight pieces of painted wood drying in the livingroom.  The results were well worth it though--I think.




Isn't her kitchen desk such a great idea?! So pretty--and in just the right location...looking out over the livingroom.



Here was my bonus treat...I got to see one of the workers 'aging' the pristine cabinets with a stain or rub.  He dotted on the stain while I watched.

These are the wonderful moments that an observant "DIY queen' like me lives for!!! Yippee!!


Then he just wiped it all off. Wow--just like that. You KNOW I'm for SURE gonna' try it one of these days!! Maybe in my kitchen or bathroom. 

Well, I hope you enjoyed this little tour. I'm so glad Laurie let me share her home with you. I knew you all would love it as much as I did.  Be sure to come back tomorrow because I saved some awesome rooms and amazing special touches to show off to you tomorrow. Plus..another great idea that you could easily do in your own home. 

Happy Homemaking!



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